Baby, I'm Amazed

We're just back from another week's worth of Cramming For Childbirth, aka Bradley Method Class. At the end of each class, we watch a childbirth video. This week's video had some nifty computer generated imagery showing the innards of the pregnant woman. While I've watched my waistline expand and I "know" the cause of this expansion is Jack's growth, seeing this depicted is a little bit of a freak-out. A good freak-out though, because I am just in awe of myself. That I can do this. That my body was made to do this. I am making a person right now. What started out as two cells grew to a little blob of cells and then a little tadpole of a human and is now nearly a full term infant.

And while all this growing has occurred, my uterus which was once the size of a small citrus fruit has grown and stretched and accomodated this other person and his water sac and his placenta and his cord. And then when it's time to meet Jackson, my body will make the appropriate arrangements to allow him a squeezy but efficient exit so he can be born. While I've been carrying him around inside of me in a big uterine hug for 33 weeks, I can't wait to hold him in my arms.

After Jack is born, my uterus will go back down (eventually, not overnight - but still!) to the size of the aforementioned small citrus fruit. And all my internal organs which have long since been displaced will settle back into their familiar places. And I'll just be me again. This blows my mind.

I asked Tim tonight what he thought of that, if he was a little bit jealous that his body wasn't designed to accomplish amazing feats of reproduction like mine was. And in typical guy fashion, he said he was most jealous of my uterus. Sure, the average guy can go from a few inches flaccid to a healthy 7 inches of penile joyride but that will still never compare to my lemon to watermelon growth of the uterus! Ha!

I see your 7 inches, Pal. And I raise you 20! :D